Lin Xingwan had always thought her hands were cold enough, but this mask felt like millennium-old profound iron. The moment she touched it, a sense of forbidden dread washed over her.
Countless voices in her mind screamed: Don't lift the mask, or the consequences will be unbearable!
But she insisted on doing so!
As she applied a little force, the mask worn by the man was pushed upwards.
The man's tall nose, long and straight eyelashes, and sharp eyebrows – Lin Xingwan's eyes widened abruptly. Fearing she might cry out in surprise, she quickly covered her mouth with her other hand.
It was him – Zhou Jinbai!
The man everyone considered a kept man, a good-for-nothing, was actually Dongfang Junze!
Even though Lin Xingwan had harbored suspicions before, only now, upon witnessing it herself, did she realize how absurd and comical this revelation was.
The bright moonlight illuminated the man's handsome yet imposing face. He looked like a banished immortal, cast down to the mortal realm for violating heavenly laws.
Silent, perfect, and aloof.
In that moment, Lin Xingwan finally understood why her life had felt like it was on steroids after meeting Zhou Jinbai.
But why had he hidden his true identity from her?
As Lin Xingwan was lost in thought, the voices of Chen Yuchu and Jia Yanzhen drifted from a distance.
Jia Yanzhen: "It's definitely here. I couldn't have been mistaken. Just keep going forward."
"Young Master Jia, are you sure?" Chen Yuchu's tone was laced with heavy doubt.
"If it's not there, you can chop off my head and use it as a soccer ball!" Jia Yanzhen detested being doubted, his voice turning angry.
Hearing the commotion, the guilty Lin Xingwan quickly put the mask back on Dongfang Junze and feigned unconsciousness.
"There seems to be someone over there!" someone suddenly exclaimed, followed by numerous flashlights shining on Lin Xingwan and Dongfang Junze.
"It's the young master and young madam. Hurry and take them to the hospital." Chen Yuchu gave the order decisively. Soon, Lin Xingwan felt herself being placed on a stretcher.
They were moving her and Dongfang Junze into an ambulance, where doctors began examining them.
"Secretary Chen, we also found Hao Manqing by the shore. She's deceased. How should we handle her body?" a subordinate asked as the ambulance prepared to depart.
"Send her back to the Cheng family."
Chen Yuchu commanded with a cold expression. Chen Yuchu's foolish actions were definitely the kind that would lead to the extermination of nine generations.
Soon, the ambulance drove away.
"Secretary Chen, Mr. Dongfang and Miss Lin are out of danger. They are expected to wake up within three hours."
"However, they have caught a chill and require an IV drip."
The doctor reported every action to Chen Yuchu, who merely nodded.
Jia Yanzhen, sitting beside Chen Yuchu, kept clicking his tongue and exclaiming, "A hero saving a beauty. That scoundrel Dongfang's move was simply perfect. He even gambled with his own life. If I were Lin Xingwan, I would definitely abandon Zhou Jinbai and fall for Dongfang Junze. It's just that Lin Xingwan will never know that Dongfang Junze is actually Zhou Jinbai. The reason this scoundrel Dongfang did all this is simply to gain greater forgiveness when the truth is revealed later."
Jia Yanzhen spoke at length, completely oblivious to Lin Xingwan's slowly clenching fists beneath the blanket on the other side.
"Young Master Jia, please say a few less words," Chen Yuchu said helplessly.
"Why should I say fewer words? Do you think what scoundrel Dongfang did is meaningful? It's too naive, utterly meaningless! Even if he saved Lin Xingwan's life, when the truth comes out later, will he tell Lin Xingwan: 'Darling, I love you dearly, but I have a fiancée'?"
Fiancée?
Lin Xingwan, who was feigning unconsciousness, felt a sharp pain in her heart.
"He claims to love Lin Xingwan, yet he divorces her the moment she asks, and rushes to answer the phone when his fiancée calls. To put it bluntly, he's just playing around. After all, Lin Xingwan isn't even as good as a single hair on scoundrel Dongfang's fiancée's head."
After speaking, Jia Yanzhen glanced at Lin Xingwan and continued, "Although Lin Xingwan is indeed quite attractive, what good is it? She has beauty but no backing to protect her. She can't even extricate herself from ordinary wealthy families, let alone the Dongfang family, the leader of them all. In the end, she won't even know how she dies! She's just a liability. It's better for scoundrel Dongfang to have a fiancée who is beautiful and capable, and also a suitable match for the Dongfang family. Only such a woman can protect scoundrel Dongfang."
"But Miss Lin is special to the young master. And the old madam also likes Miss Lin very much." Chen Yuchu knew Jia Yanzhen was speaking the truth but still didn't want to be so pessimistic about the young master and young madam's relationship.
"The old madam likes Lin Xingwan, that's true. But it doesn't stop her from traveling abroad with her future granddaughter-in-law these past few days. The old madam is clearer-headed than all of you."
While Jia Yanzhen and Chen Yuchu were chatting, Lin Xingwan could listen no longer.
Lin Xingwan was too tired, too cold. Exhausted in body and mind, her consciousness blurred again.
After receiving medical treatment, she and Zhou Jinbai were flown back to Rongcheng by helicopter.
Meanwhile, in another helicopter, Hao Manqing's body was being transported towards the Cheng family villa.
At the same time, inside the Cheng family villa.
Cheng Zhiyuan, who had always been robust, had recently turned completely gray-haired in just a few days due to his son's affairs.
The once spirited middle-aged man now looked pitiful and sorrowful.
It was already past three in the morning.
His wife had gone out last night at eight and still hadn't returned. No matter how many times Cheng Zhiyuan called her, she wouldn't answer.
Although Hao Manqing had done many wrong things, they had been married for a long time and weathered many storms together. How could Cheng Zhiyuan truly ignore her?
Just as Cheng Zhiyuan was about to call Hao Manqing again, he heard a rumbling sound from outside the villa.
Startled, Cheng Zhiyuan quickly got out of bed and ran into the courtyard. He saw a black helicopter steadily landing on the lawn of his villa.
Following that, several burly bodyguards in black suits carried something covered with a white sheet and casually placed it on the lawn.
Chen Yuchu stood by the helicopter's cabin door, not disembarking.
She looked down at the 'old man' before her like a queen.
"Secretary Chen... Secretary Chen... What... What has happened?" Upon seeing Chen Yuchu, Cheng Zhiyuan's unease spread like smoke. His limbs turned cold, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably.
"Mr. Cheng, why don't you take a look first at what's under the white sheet." Chen Yuchu looked at Cheng Zhiyuan with disdain, her tone filled with sarcasm.
Cheng Zhiyuan then turned his gaze back to the white sheet on the lawn. From the raised outline beneath the sheet, he could tell it was a person.
As if realizing something, Cheng Zhiyuan felt as though his heart had been struck by a blunt object. He walked heavily towards the white sheet.
Reaching the sheet, he slowly crouched down and, with trembling hands, lifted it.
The next second, Hao Manqing's face, her eyes wide open in death, appeared before him.
"Ah—" Cheng Zhiyuan recoiled in shock.
His face was filled with astonishment and disbelief.
But after a few seconds, Cheng Zhiyuan broke down in tears. He crawled to Hao Manqing's body, embracing her and weeping, "Manqing, oh Manqing, we only parted for a few hours, how could we be separated by death? Manqing, Manqing..."
Cheng Zhiyuan cried out with heart-wrenching grief. Chen Yuchu said coldly, "Tonight is the night of the quinquennial Elysian Feast. Hao Manqing infiltrated the feast, armed with a gun, and attempted to assassinate Miss Lin. Not only that, she dragged Miss Lin from the observation deck. Mr. Dongfang Junze, in order to save Miss Lin, also jumped from the observation deck."
Chen Yuchu's words, carried by the night wind, pierced Cheng Zhiyuan like icy daggers.
Cheng Zhiyuan collapsed to the ground.
Unexpected, yet within reason.
"Manqing, oh Manqing, why were you so foolish... so stubborn? Why did you have to go this far? Why?" Cheng Zhiyuan rested his chin on Hao Manqing's head, repeatedly admitting his fault, "It's all my fault. I was a fool for falling for Tao Xian. I truly know I was wrong. Please wake up, Manqing. I beg you, Manqing. Our son is waiting for us to get him out of prison. He asked me to take good care of you. He worried about you the most before he went to prison, but what have I done..."
"Let's go." Chen Yuchu turned and returned to the helicopter.
—
The next day.
When Lin Xingwan woke up again, she felt someone touching her face.
Lin Xingwan's eyes snapped open, and she was met with Zhou Jinbai's anxious face.
"Wife, where do you feel unwell?" Zhou Jinbai's voice was filled with worry, and the fear in Lin Xingwan's eyes made him even more anxious.
Lin Xingwan looked at Zhou Jinbai with a profoundly unfamiliar gaze. If she hadn't known the truth last night, she would have believed his concerned eyes were genuine.
In relationships, deception is more unforgivable than betrayal. All excuses like 'I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd be angry' are extremely insulting.
What's more terrifying than deception is the pretense before it and the subsequent distrust.
The indifference in the woman's eyes was too obvious. Zhou Jinbai felt as though their relationship had regressed to the time they first met.
No!
At least at the time they first met, this woman looked at him with adoration and trust.
But now, they were like strangers passing each other by.
That feeling of powerlessness was like being tormented by nightmares in the dead of night.
"Wife?" Zhou Jinbai spoke again, but this time his tone carried a hint of unease.
Lin Xingwan pushed Zhou Jinbai away, got out of bed, and went to the washroom to freshen up.
Zhou Jinbai tried to follow his wife, but Lin Xingwan ruthlessly shut the washroom door.
If Zhou Jinbai hadn't quickly stepped back, his nose would have been broken.
This woman was truly cold and heartless.
Inside the washroom, Lin Xingwan looked at her pale reflection. The events of last night replayed in her mind like a movie.
The familiar face beneath the mask, and Jia Yanzhen's words...
It seemed everyone knew her marriage to Zhou Jinbai was a deception from the start, but no one had told her.
Not even her grandmother, whom she had always respected.
Who was Dongfang Junze's fiancée?
Did this man ever love her? Or was she just a plaything of his whim, as Jia Yanzhen had said!
And what Tao Xian had told her – that she wasn't Lin Hanhai's biological daughter.
Were those terrifying childhood nightmares real, or just her overactive imagination?
She used to think her life was simple and happy. Although there were shortcomings, she was content.
Now, Lin Xingwan was troubled by a myriad of confusing questions.
Lin Xingwan frantically splashed water from the faucet onto her cheeks, wanting to shake off the chaotic thoughts in her mind. But her head felt like it was about to explode.
What usually took a few minutes for her to wash up, Lin Xingwan spent over twenty minutes in the washroom.
Finally, when Zhou Jinbai attempted to force his way in, Lin Xingwan left the washroom with a cold expression.
Zhou Jinbai's gaze met Lin Xingwan's, and he instantly transformed from a fierce wolfdog into a little lamb, trying his best to appear harmless.
"Wife, let's eat something first. You lie down, and I'll feed you."
"No need. There's a lot of work at the company that needs my attention." Lin Xingwan said, then walked towards the door.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Jinbai immediately blocked her path. "No, no matter how much work there is, you must eat something first. You haven't eaten anything since last night; your body can't handle it."
"How do you know I haven't eaten anything since last night?" Lin Xingwan asked.
The expression on her face was too inscrutable, making Zhou Jinbai feel even more flustered.
"Secretary Chen from Dongfang Corporation called me early this morning, saying you fell into the water, so I rushed over to take care of you... That's why I guessed you hadn't eaten anything." Zhou Jinbai explained.
"Heh." Lin Xingwan scoffed. Just as she was about to say something else, a strange man suddenly appeared outside the hospital room.
"Excuse me... is Miss Lin Xingwan in this room?" the stranger asked.
"I am. What is it?"
Upon hearing this, the man continued, "Hello, Miss Lin. I'm from a delivery company. Someone asked me to deliver this, and instructed me to ensure you open it personally."